A bipedal, vegetarian dinosaur the size of a small pony. "Shaya" [ɕaja] actually stands for an entire genus with different species for different climates. These animals are covered in feathers which fill the same function as mammalian fur. (They have nothing resembling flight feathers.) All species other than the most heat adopted one can shift between a summer and a winter coat. The change between them is determined by temperature. If they don't need to change coat old feathers are phased out and new ones phased in every 11 – 13 months.Like most dinosaurs shayas are hatched with teeth. However, these are not used for chewing. Instead, they swallow pebbles which grid the food in their gizzards. Shayas can eat most plant matter which is as soft as twigs or softer. They can also eat human vegan food. But they can easily grow fat if you give them too much of it.As all dinosaurs shayas lay eggs. Male and female takes turn to brood. When the young are hatched they are feed during their first few days. Then their parents teach them which plants are eatable. Young animals too small to keep the pace of the adults have very strong arms and hands. This way they can hold on to the feathers at the backs of their parents. The ability to hold on gradually disappears after they become large and strong enough to walk as fast as the adults.Shayas prefer to live in herds. They usually consist of 2 – 10 breeding pairs with young which have not reached adulthood yet. Normally, the adults have a clear hacking order independently of gender or mate. If the number of adults exceeds 20 they become aggressive and drive away a few. The same thing happens if the herd becomes too large for the food available. Otherwise, they are not particularly aggressive. Neither are they any more prone to panic than reindeer are. Together with shayas growing fast this makes them suitable as livestock. They are also smart enough to be trained as beasts of burden.

1. Polar shaya (Shaya tundrica) – tundra, tundra-steppe, adjacent forests and open woodlands. This is the most cold adopted of all shaya species. It also has the largest feet which are completely covered with feathers in winter. This species can only reproduce in the summer, the eggs freeze to death if the temperature falls below the freezing point of water. If possible the animals wander over the year to utilize the typically milder winters in areas were trees grow. This increases the chance of the young surviving their first winter. 1.1. Tundra shaya (Shaya tundrica tundrica) – tundra and adjacent forest. This is the only naturally occurring variety since the species' range on Olukonia is rather small. 1.2. Tundra-steppe shaya (Shaya tundrica pratica) – tundra-steppe and adjacent open woodlands. This is a genetically engineered variety adopted for an environment which does not exist on Olukonia.

2. Forest shaya (Shaya sylvestris) – temperateforests, open woodlands and Mediterranean climate. This species are considered the closest to the genus' origin. In this one there is a great difference between winter and summer coat. It always breeds in the spring when the temperature has risen enough. 2.1. Taiga shaya (Shaya sylvestris borealis) – cold temperate forest and open woodland. This subspecies can survive in forests so cold as to border to the tundra. But the polar shaya has easier to cope with the winters there. 2.2. German shaya (Shaya sylvestris germanici) – warm temperate forest and open woodland. This subspecies is adopted for a relatively mild temperate climate still having clear differences between seasons. 2.3. Shire shaya (Shaya sylvestris provinciae) – warm temperate forest and open woodland. Resembles the German shaya, however, it is smaller and with a thicker winter coat. 2.4. Coastal forest shaya (Shaya sylvestris austranensis) – warm temperate forest and open woodland. Resembles the German shaya but has a smaller difference between summer and winter coat. 2.5. Inland forest shaya (Shaya sylvestris canadensis) – warm temperate forest and open woodland. Resembles the German shaya, however, it is smaller and with a thinner summer coat. 2.6. Marquis shaya (Shaya sylvestris frutis) – Mediterranean climate. This subspecies is adopted for a moist, subtropical climate getting most of its precipitation in the winter. 2.7. California shaya (Shaya sylvestris californica) – Mediterranean climate. Very similar to the marquis shaya but has evolved independently of it. 3. Steppe shaya (Shaya pratica) – steppe, subtropical plainsand adjacent open woodlands. This is the largest of all shaya species. It can run pretty fast but not as fast as a horse. Like the forest shaya it breeds in the spring.

3.1. Prairie shaya (Shaya pratica pratica) – temperate steppe and adjacent open woodland. This subspecies has a rather large difference between winter and summer coat as an adoption to a temperate climate. 3.2. Western steppe shaya (Shaya pratica occientis) – subtropical plains and adjacent open woodland with winter rain. This subspecies breeds at the very beginning of the spring. This is for the young to get as much food as possible before the summer drought sets in. 3.3. Eastern steppe shaya (Shaya pratica orientis) – subtropical plains and adjacent open woodland with summer rain. This subspecies breeds relatively late in spring to utilize the rainy season.

4. Desert shaya (Shaya deserti) – deserts and adjacent shrublands. This species has a particularly durable mouth, throat and gizzard to be able to eat plants with thorns. Adult desert shayas don't need to drink. But they may occasionally drink small amounts if they get the chance. The species breeds during the warmer half of the year in places with reliable sources of water. Usually, this means an oasis. 4.1. Cool desert shaya (Shaya deserti frigus) – temperate desert and adjacent scrubland. This subspecies has considerable difference between winter and summer coat. 4.2. Warm desert shaya (Shaya deserti deserti) – subtropical desert and adjacent scrubland. This subspecies is particularly adapted to large temperature differences between day and night. This is especially true for the winter. 4.3. Hot desert shaya (Shaya desertica caloratus) – tropical desert and adjacent scrubland. This subspecies is especially adapted for heat. It normally perceives frosty night as unpleasant.

5. Savannah shaya (Shaya campestris) – tropicalplains adjacent open woodlands. This is the most heat-loving species. In fact, it is so adapted to heat that it risks frostbite if it does not get shelter during a frosty night. It can't shift to a winter coat like all other shay species. Instead, the feathers are always replaced every 11 – 13 months. The savannah shaya breeds at the beginning of the wet season. As the most specialized shaya species it completely lacks subspecies.

6. Jungle shaya (Shaya janglensis) – tropical rainforest, tropical and subtropical monsoon forestsand adjacent open woodlands. This species is the smallest of its genus. The winter and summer cost is mostly differed by the summer coat being more resistant to water. This species breeds at the beginning of the wet season. In areas recurrently flooded it breeds on hills to avoid eggs and young being drowned. 6.1. Chinese shaya (Shaya janglensis sinarum) – subtropical monsoon forest and adjacent open woodland. This subspecies has the largest difference between winter and summer coat. Its winter coat is as warm as in the most heat adapted subspecies of the forest shaya (Shaya sylvestris frutis and Shaya borealis californica). 6.2. Indian shaya (Shaya janglensis indiae) – tropical monsoon forest and adjacent open woodland. This subspecies has very little difference winter and summer coat except for resistance to water. 6.3. Rainforest shaya (Shaya janglensis janglensis) – tropical rainforest. This subspecies has almost no difference between winter and summer coat. If the temperature does not noticeably differ over the year it rarely shifts to winter coat.

7. Mountain shaya (Shaya montis) – any rocky terrain with sufficient vegetation to cover the soil. This species can cope with temperature differences between day and night as well as the desert shaya (Shaya desertica). It can breathe air with less oxygen than any other shaya species. Also, this species' sense of balance is superior to other shayas'. 7.1. Alpine shaya (Shaya montis celticorum) – mountains on temperate latitudes. This subspecies wanders over the year between alpine tundra and high altitude forest. The behaviour resembles the polar shaya's (Shaya tundrica) wandering but over smaller distances. 7.2. Spanish shaya (Shaya montis hispaniae) – mountains on subtropical latitudes. It wanders in the same way as the Alpine shaya but adapts more to the weather. 7.3. Inca shaya (Shaya montis circadica) – mountains on tropical latitudes. This subspecies lives in the vegetation zones higher than mountain rainforest. It wanders up and down dependent on the weather but usually be higher up during the days and lower during the nights.

One may ask why there is so many subspecies of the forest shaya (Shaya borealis) in particular. The explanation is in the extent of the vegetation zones on their homeworld Olukonia. The warm temperate forests(and open woodlands) of the northern hemisphere is divided into several areas. All but one are connected to cold temperate forests to the north. They are divided by steppes and mountains. In the same way there are two areas which both have Mediterranean climate but are thousands of kilometres from each other. All shayas hate wetlands except for the natural polar shaya (Shaya tundrica tundrica). On the other hand, it is so cold adapted that it has hard to cope with warmth. If it can't immense itself in water it actually risks heatstroke at temperatures above 20° C (68° F). The genetically engineered variety of the species (Shaya tundrica pratica) can cope with up to 32° C (90° F). But it has an instinctive dislike of water-soaked environments. Please note that shayas are hatched as either male or female. Then they remain so throughout their lives. Their genitalsare so complex that natural sex change would not be worth it.